SA telescope reaches for the stars

[Mike]

The largest single telescope in the Southern Hemisphere is being inaugurated on 10 November in South Africa. The BBC's Nick Miles visited Sutherland shortly before the inauguration.

Set on a desolate plateau four hours from Cape Town, the Southern African Large Telescope (Salt), dominates its surroundings.

This site near the town of Sutherland has been the home of South Africa's main observatories for more than half a century, but the new telescope dwarfs the seven others that came before it.

It is the largest single telescope in the Southern Hemisphere and is largely financed by South Africa.

FULL STORY - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4422090.stm